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Netflix delivered impressive first-quarter results for 2025, posting revenue of $10.54 billion, exceeding Wall Street's expectations of $10.52 billion according to LSEG data. The 13% year-over-year revenue growth was primarily driven by membership increases and recent price hikes implemented across subscription tiers.
This earnings report marks a significant strategic shift for the streaming leader, as it has officially discontinued reporting quarterly subscriber counts. Netflix now aims to focus investor attention on financial metrics and user engagement as key performance indicators rather than subscriber growth.
"Revenue was modestly above our guidance due to slightly higher-than-forecasted subscription and ad revenue," Netflix stated in its shareholder letter. The company maintained its full-year 2025 revenue forecast of $43.5-44.5 billion, representing 11.5-14.1% growth.
Net income for Q1 reached $2.89 billion, translating to $6.61 per share—significantly outpacing the $5.71 per share analysts had projected. Operating margin improved to 31.7%, up from 28.1% in the samequarter last year.
Advertising revenue remains a critical growth focus for Netflix in 2025. "A key focus in 2025 is enhancing our capabilities for advertisers," the company noted. Netflix launched its in-house ad technology platform in early April across U.S. markets, with plans for international expansion in coming months.
The strong earnings report comes amid broader economic uncertainty related to President Trump's trade policies, which have negatively impacted many traditional media stocks. Netflix executives, however, expressed confidence in the company's resilience.
"Based on what we are seeing by actually operating the business right now, there's nothing really significant to note," co-CEO Greg Peters remarked during the earnings call. "Entertainment historically has been pretty resilient in tougher economic times. Netflix, specifically, also, has been generally quite resilient."
In a separate corporate governance announcement, co-founder Reed Hastings will transition from executive chairman to non-executive chairman of the board.
Netflix's financial position remains solid with $7.2 billion in cash and equivalents against $15.1 billion in gross debt. During Q1, the company repurchased 3.7 million shares for $3.5 billion and paid down $800 million in debt.
For the upcoming second quarter, Netflix projects 15% revenue growth as it realizes "the full quarter benefit from recent price changes and continued growth in membership and advertising revenue." The company expects Q2 operating margin to reach 33% with earnings per share of $7.03.
Netflix shares gained approximately 2% in extended trading following the announcement, reflecting investor confidence in the streaming giant's evolving business strategy and strong financial performance despite broader market uncertainties.